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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Number of students from multicultural backgrounds triples over 9 years

In this file photo, students from multicultural backgrounds learn the language and culture of their parents' countries at an elementary school in Songpa District, Seoul. Korea Times files By Lee Hae-rinThe number of students from multicultural backgrounds grew three times over the last nine years to 160,000.According to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and the Ministry of Education, Wednesday, the number of minors from multicultural backgrounds who are enrolled in elementary, middle, and high school increased from 46,954 in 2012 to 160,058 this year.In contrast, the country's low birthrate led the total number of students to drop by 21 percent from 6.72 million to 5.32 million and increased the proportion of multicultural students from 0.7 percent to 3.0 percent.In elementary schools, the percentage of those from multicultural families grew from 1.1 percent in 2012 to 4.2 percent, while increasing five times to 2.5 percent in middle schools. In high school

Apr 13, 2022By Lee Hae-rin
Number of students from multicultural backgrounds triples over 9 years
  • Foreign residents in Korea forecast to increase to 4.3% of population in 2040

Justice minister nominee Han Dong-hoon steals the show

Justice Minister nominee Han Dong-hoon / Yonhap Ruling party calls the nomination a prelude to Korea as the Republic of the ProsecutionBy Kang Hyun-kyungJustice Minister nominee Han Dong-hoon made news on Wednesday as President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol unveiled his second batch of Cabinet ministers. Among the Cabinet minister nominees, he received the most questions from reporters and became the most sought-after new nominee of the day. Yoon's selection of Han for justice minister was considered a shock to some. Han, the vice president of the Judicial Research & Training Institute, is widely known as Yoon's closest aide in the prosecution service. Thus, it had been rumored that he would be tapped for “one of the key posts” in the prosecution service, such as the head of the Seoul Central Prosecution's Office, since Yoon was elected in the March 9 presidential race.Unveiling his pick for justice minister on Wednesday, Yoon said that Han is a well-trained prosecutor with

Apr 13, 2022By Kang Hyun-kyung
Justice minister nominee Han Dong-hoon steals the show
  • Yoon taps Park Jin as foreign minister, Kwon Young-se as unification minister

Kim Dae-ki named presidential chief of staff

Kim Dae-ki, who has been appointed by President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol as his administration's chief of staff, speaks to reporters in the transition committee office building in Tongui-dong, Jongro District, Seoul, Wednesday. YonhapBy Lee Hyo-jin President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol tapped Kim Dae-ki, a veteran bureaucrat with decades-long experience in key government agencies, including the presidential office, as the chief of staff of his administration, which will kick off on May 10. During a press conference, Wednesday, Yoon announced the appointment of the 66-year-old as his first chief of staff, along with nominations for eight cabinet ministers.Explaining the background of Kim's appointment, the president-elect called him an “ideal figure” for the post, given his expertise in both the economy and politics. “Kim began his career at the economy ministry. He has a rare history in the presidential office, where he started to serve as an official, and was promoted to the senior presidential secretary for economic affairs and then the chief of policy affairs,” Yoon sai

Apr 13, 2022By Lee Hyo-jin
Kim Dae-ki named presidential chief of staff
  • Yoon taps Park Jin as foreign minister, Kwon Young-se as unification minister

Ex-judge named interior minister nominee

Interior Minister nominee Lee Sang-min / YonhapInterior Minister nominee Lee Sang-min is a former judge who served as vice chief of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC).Hailing from North Jeolla Province, Lee began his career as a district court judge in Seoul in 1992 and later worked as a researcher at the Supreme Court. He also served as an advisor for the former main conservative Saenuri Party in the past. From 2015 to 2017, Lee served as the ACRC's vice chairman for administrative appeals. During the presidential election, he joined the main opposition People Power Party's campaign and later joined the transition committee as a special advisor.Lee went to Seoul's Choongam High School, where President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol graduated from, and is also Yoon's Seoul National University school of law alumnus. (Yonhap)

Apr 13, 2022
Ex-judge named interior minister nominee
  • Yoon nominates four-term lawmaker Park Jin as new foreign minister

Veteran bureaucrat with maritime expertise tapped as oceans minister

Oceans Minister nominee Cho Seung-hwan / YonhapCho Seung-hwan, the nominee for Korea's new oceans minister, is a veteran bureaucrat who has built a variety of expertise in the maritime field.The former head of the Korea Institute of Marine Science and Technology Promotion (KIMST) graduated from Korea University in Seoul in 1990 and started his career as a civil servant after passing the state exam the same year.Born in the southern port city of Busan, the 56-year-old has held major positions at the oceans ministry since 2003 and served as the head of Busan Regional Office of Oceans and Fisheries in 2016.While serving as the chief of KIMST from 2018 to 2021, Cho led efforts to support research and development in the maritime fields and various related projects, including the development of smart maritime farming.Based on his 27-year-long career in public service, Cho is expected to respond to global maritime challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and its technological transformation. (Yonhap)

Apr 13, 2022
Veteran bureaucrat with maritime expertise tapped as oceans minister
  • Yoon nominates four-term lawmaker Park Jin as new foreign minister

Climate change expert tapped as environment minister

Environment Minister nominee Han Wha-jin / Yonhap Environment Minister nominee Han Wha-jin, an honorary researcher of the Korea Environment Institute, is a former scientist with career experience in the field of air pollution and climate change.Born in 1959, Han finished her undergraduate and master's studies in chemistry at Korea University and later earned her doctorate degree at the University of California, Los Angeles, through researching ozone generation.Han was a founding member of the Korea Environment Institute and worked there as a researcher for 23 years. She also served as presidential secretary for environment at Cheong Wa Dae from 2009 and 2010 during the Lee Myung-bak administration.Later, Han served as a member of the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission and the Green Growth Committee under the Prime Minister's Office. She also served as the head of the Korea Foundation for Women in Science Engineering and Technology from 2016 to 2019. (Yonhap)

Apr 13, 2022
Climate change expert tapped as environment minister
  • Yoon nominates four-term lawmaker Park Jin as new foreign minister

Ruling party to select Seoul mayor nominee without primary

Rep. Yun Ho-jung, chairman of the party's emergency committee / Yonhap The Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) decided to nominate a candidate for Seoul mayor without a primary, the party's chief said Wednesday, raising the possibility the party will look for a new person rather than selecting from existing contenders, including former party Chairman Song Young-gil.Rep. Yun Ho-jung, chairman of the party's emergency committee, said that the decision to make a "strategic nomination" for Seoul mayor was made as part of efforts to ensure a "surefire victory" in June's local elections.The DPK "will field a candidate who will live up to people's expectations based on competitiveness and the possibility of victory," Yun said.Song, the former DPK chairman, declared his bid for Seoul mayor, but some party lawmakers criticized him for avoiding his responsibility for defeat in the March presidential election.The mayoral election will be one of the biggest races, along with the gu

Apr 13, 2022
Ruling party to select Seoul mayor nominee without primary

Yoon nominates four-term lawmaker Park Jin as new foreign minister

Rep. Park Jin has been nominated as Korea's new foreign minister. YonhapPresident-elect Yoon Suk-yeol nominated Rep. Park Jin as foreign minister and Rep. Kwon Young-se as unification minister Wednesday, while tapping Han Dong-hoon, a senior prosecutor and key confidant, to be justice minister.Yoon announced the nominations at a press conference where he also named six other Cabinet members and his first chief of staff.Park is a four-term lawmaker of Yoon's People Power Party (PPP) who worked briefly for the foreign ministry after passing the foreign service exam in the 1970s, and is considered an expert on relations with the U.S.Kwon is also a four-term PPP lawmaker who served as ambassador to China during the Park Geun-hye administration and is known as one of Yoon's closest associates.Kim In-chul, former president of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, was named education minister and deputy prime minister for social affairs, while Han, widely known as one of Yoon's closest confidants, was tapped for justice minister.Meanwhile, Lee Sang-min, former vice chief of the Anti-Corrupt

Apr 13, 2022
Yoon nominates four-term lawmaker Park Jin as new foreign minister
  • Climate change expert tapped as environment minister
  • Veteran bureaucrat with maritime expertise tapped as oceans minister
  • Ex-judge named interior minister nominee

Prosecutor general denounces prosecution 'reform' bill as 'violation of Constitution'

Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo speaks to reporters as he enters his office in southern Seoul, April 13. Yonhap Prosecutor General Kim Oh-soo pledged Wednesday to do everything he could to derail the ruling Democratic Party of Korea's push for a bill depriving the prosecution of its investigative power, denouncing the move as a "direct violation of the Constitution" that would be welcomed only by criminals.The DPK has been pushing for what it calls a "complete deprivation of the prosecutorial investigative right" as part of efforts to reform the powerful law enforcement agency long accused of abusing its power for political and other purposes.The party, which controls a majority in the 300-member National Assembly, decided in a general meeting of lawmakers Tuesday to pass the reform bill through the Assembly later this month before the May 10 inauguration of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol.The prosecutor general has strongly protested the proposed bill, saying he would

Apr 13, 2022
Prosecutor general denounces prosecution 'reform' bill as 'violation of Constitution'

Yoon to announce additional Cabinet nominations

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol speaks after announcing eight Cabinet nominees at the presidential transition committee's office in Seoul, April 10. Yoon will announce a second round of Cabinet nominations Wednesday. Yonhap President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will announce a second round of Cabinet nominations Wednesday, his spokesperson said, a list that is expected to include at least seven minister nominees and his chief of staff.The nominations will be for the remaining 10 positions ― ministers of education, foreign affairs, unification, justice, interior and safety, labor, small and medium-sized enterprises, maritime affairs, agriculture and the environment.Yoon will announce the nominees at a press conference at 2 p.m., his spokesperson Bae Hyun-jin told reporters."All 10 could be announced, but two or three of them are still under final review," an official close to the president-elect told Yonhap News Agency. Yoon is also expected to name his first chief of staff am

Apr 13, 2022
Yoon to announce additional Cabinet nominations
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